


Acquiescence

by triste



Category: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle
Genre: Humor, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-21
Updated: 2012-11-21
Packaged: 2017-11-19 05:03:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/569405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/triste/pseuds/triste
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fai is concerned. Kurogane pretends not to notice.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Acquiescence

Title: Acquiescence  
Author: Triste  
Fandom: Tsubasa Chronicle  
Pairing: Kurogane/Fai  
Rating: PG  
Status: Complete  
Disclaimer: Not mine

~~

It never really took much to affect Kurogane's mood. Delays, burdens and people who couldn't (or wouldn't) pull their own weight were more than enough to incense him, but the two things that never failed to send him flying off the handle were wrong looks and blithe words, both of which could serve to wreck his entire day and put him in a terrible temper for at least a week or even more.

"I claim Kuro-rin~!"

That sentence had started off everything. It wasn't just the words themselves of course, it was the way in which they'd been spoken, accompanied by a grin that stretched from ear to ear, but for once Fai D. Flowright wasn't the sole cause of Kurogane's annoyance.

Kurogane could tolerate travelling by foot. He could even tolerate travelling by sea or by air, and although he would never usually protest reaching his destination on horseback, he definitely had no intention of being forced to share his steed, especially with an air-headed imbecile who was forever coming up with new and different pet names to call him by.

Kurogane had never really been a lucky man, and, thanks to hitsuzen (or at least some idiot's poor management skills) they had only been able to acquire a total of two horses. It wouldn't have been so much of a problem if there hadn't been a total of four members in their group (or five if you counted Mokona, which Kurogane didn't), and so the scene was set.

"I guess this means I'll share with Syaoran-kun," said Sakura, and Fai clapped his hands cheerfully.

"Then it's decided! Sakura-chan, would you like a lift?"

Sakura nodded in gratitude and Fai waited for Syaoran to get on first and take hold of the reins before helping Sakura into place. A lot of blushing and stuttered apologies soon followed as Sakura slid her arms around Syaoran's waist, and Fai smiled at the pair of them like the indulgent mother that he claimed to be. Any hope Kurogane had of riding off and disappearing into the distance while the wizard was preoccupied were immediately dashed when that same smile turned on him and increased its wattage by around five hundred and thirty percent.

"Ku~ro~sa~ma~!"

It was like a scene from some horribly girly movie played in agonising slow motion as Fai waltzed over to where Kurogane was waiting, his hair and his ridiculously long coat flapping in the breeze along with the sound of laughter that Fai probably considered to be joyful and endearing, but in Kurogane's opinion was no more melodious than chainsaws and pneumatic drills.

"Just get on the damn horse," Kurogane snapped, wishing he'd never even opened his mouth when Fai beamed brightly.

"Whatever Daddy says!"

He vaulted into his seat with impressive ease and clamped himself firmly onto Kurogane, displaying the kind of strength a boa constrictor could only envy, and Kurogane tensed up as Fai moved in closer still and rested his chin securely on the taller man's shoulder.

"You don't have to hold on that tight," Kurogane growled, but Fai just laughed and gave his waist a little squeeze.

"Think of it as a safety precaution," he said impishly. "You wouldn't want me falling off now, would you?"

Kurogane couldn't think of anything more pleasing than the idea of Fai getting trampled on by thundering hooves at that moment, but Mokona ruined the mental image by popping up out of Syaoran's jacket and making a gleeful 'puu' noise.

"Kurogane and Fai look so lovey-dovey!" it chirped, oblivious to Kurogane's murderous intent. "Chu, chu~!"

"Did you hear that, Kuro-chan?" cooed Fai, paying no more attention to Kurogane's growing irritation than Mokona had. "We're creating an atmosphere for romance!"

"Keep talking and it'll be an atmosphere for death and destruction," Kurogane warned darkly, but Fai merely 'hyuu'd' into his ear before pointing towards the horizon.

"Well then, let's be off! Syaoran-kun, Sakura-chan, don't get left behind!"

The two younger members responded dutifully and then they departed, Kurogane leading while Syaoran followed. Fai was surprisingly quiet during the beginning of the journey, making Kurogane feel wary and suspicious, but that all changed when Fai began to hum.

"Stop that," Kurogane cautioned, and again Fai surprised him by falling silent, giving Kurogane much cause for concern. Taciturnity had never been Fai's strong suit, nor did he ever tend to do as he was told, and Kurogane found himself wondering if the wizard was plotting something sinister or stupid.

It took a further ten minutes of Fai not speaking before Kurogane's nerves finally reached breaking point, but what Fai did next nearly made Kurogane steer their mount headlong into an approaching embankment.

"Kuro-rin's lost weight," Fai remarked conversationally, slipping a hand under Kurogane's shirt and splaying his fingers across his stomach.

"The hell?!" Kurogane bristled, his fingers clenching reflexively around the reigns. "What are you *doing*? Stop touching me!"

Fai ignored him, just moved his hand higher and pressed over Kurogane's ribcage. "You can't hide from me," he stated, only half-teasing. "Besides, it's true. You haven't been eating much lately."

"Blame the manjuu," huffed Kurogane, staring ahead very fixedly. "It doesn't always spit us out into a world where money and supplies are easy to come across."

"I suppose that's true enough," Fai agreed. "It's not like we can control or predict the worlds that we fall into, but still, it isn't entirely Mokona's fault."

"It is when the fool thing keeps stealing food from my plate," Kurogane argued.

"You wouldn't have as much to complain about if your share of the rations wasn't so unfair," Fai pointed out.

"The kid and the princess are the ones who need to eat most. That's just how it is."

"Kuro-sama is such a cool daddy! He's always so concerned for his babies!"

Kurogane's eyebrow twitched. "They're not babies and they sure as hell aren't mine."

"It is nice, though," Fai continued, completely disregarding Kurogane's response. "Having a family unit, I mean." He sounded almost wistful, but his tone lightened when he added, "It's nice to see Kuro-pon growing closer to Syaoran-kun, too. You're a good mentor for him."

"He's a good student," Kurogane replied flatly. "He only has to be told something once to understand it. He doesn't get ahead of himself and he doesn't try to do things he's not capable of. He doesn't flounce around with a brainless grin on his face either, unlike someone I know."

"Ah, you forget," Fai chided, neatly sidestepping Kurogane's attempt to goad him. "You mustn’t neglect poor Sakura-chan. Playing favourites with children isn't good. It always causes jealousy and resentment."

"And why am I supposed to care?" Kurogane said caustically.

"Because you need to learn how to be more gentle! Hauling Sakura-chan around like a bag of potatoes when she's unconscious isn't going to win you any points, even if it is a very effective way of keeping her from danger," claimed Fai. "But we can resolve that by making a special daddy-daughter day! The two of you can go out shopping together and then follow it up by having a good old-fashioned girl's night in. Wouldn't that be lovely?"

"I'd rather drive red-hot nails into my skull," scoffed Kurogane, and Fai laughed at his lack of enthusiasm.

"That's my Kuro-pi," he said affectionately. "You're always so easily embarrassed. But you know," he continued, before Kurogane could start bellowing his rage over the implication that he might be shy, "you mustn’t neglect Mommy either, otherwise he'll get lonely."

Kurogane was about to snort out some derisive comment when Fai slid his hand up further still and placed it over Kurogane's heart.

"You shouldn't pretend that you don't care about somebody when really you do," Fai said softly, making Kurogane scowl.

"Since when have I ever cared about *you*?" he spat, but Fai's voice was melancholy and faraway when he responded.

"Actually, I was referring to Syaoran-kun and Sakura-chan. It'd be nice if they could find the happy ending they deserve, don't you think?"

"You really are a hypocritical bastard."

"And that's why you hate me, right?"

Kurogane didn't answer. Underneath the sugary-sweet pretences, Kurogane knew Fai's head contained more than just hot air, but if he'd gotten so tangled up in his fanciful facade that he couldn't even tell the difference between lies and truth anymore, then he wasn't worth Kurogane's time or effort.

"It would also be nice," Fai concluded, resting his cheek against Kurogane's back and going very still, "if we could stay like this for just a little while longer. Don't you think?"

It wasn't exactly what Kurogane wanted to hear, but he hmph'd out his version of acquiescence anyway by muttering under his breath, "What a pain in the ass."

 

End.


End file.
